What Lies Underneath?
by Liola Li
Summary: An in-depth documentary on Hiei's undergarments inspired by a curious e-mail and backed up by a double-dog dare. One-shot and not for the faint of heart.


Title: What Lies Underneath?  
  
Rating: PG-13 because it has some *content* on it. If you haven't figured it out why, please leave through the exit on your left. No, that's right.  
  
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Author's note: Someone has just recently contacted me with the following question: What type of underwear does Hiei wear? To the person who e-mailed me this, I apologize for not replying. I had to delete it before I could reply because it is my older bro's name and I'm yet not of age to get my own private screen-name. The reason is something dealing with not wanting to deal with the junk I foolishly sign up with. ^^; heh. heh. heh.*cough* Now onto the in-depth (well, as in-depth as it could be) documentary on our beloved fire-demon's undergarments.  
  
-----------------------------------------------*What Lies Underneath?~ An Independent Study*--------------------------------------  
  
A) ~Does Hiei wear underwear?  
  
To start, there has been a lot of debate if Hiei even wears underwear. To explain it more clearly, I have to present a little piece of history:  
  
Dubbed the Forbidden Child by the Koorime, being thrown off a floating island as an infant, and raised with a group of a devious band of Makai thieves has got to have some negative effect on a kid. Thus the beginning of the non-social and cold-hearted Hiei and the inspiration for this essay. While traveling alone, he had trained his body brutally to reach his life goals and to the reach the limit of his amazing skills. By a string of chances and coincidence, Hiei met Kurama, Yusuke, and Kuwabara, in that order. He still retains his cold glares but being part of the Reikai Tentai seemed to help soften his heart a little.  
  
Now zipping back to the present.  
  
As a demon, he is, by default, not very modest with his body. Add that to his harsh past mentioned above would definitely add to his I-don't- care-attitude which attributes to his oh-so-warm personality. There has been evidence of this in various episodes when he would take off his trademark black cloak and show a little flesh. [Yeah, like you didn't notice 9_9] Though it may be for his ability to move around, you can't help but wonder or either wonder just a teensy too much. My point is thus: He is very comfortable with his body. [Does anyone see a reason why in Makai he shouldn't be?]  
  
Secondly, he does seems to like his personal space. He is a speedy little demon, after all, and running does need a little space. Tree branches also seem to be his most preferred bedding. His style of clothing also proves this little clue. Notice his pants: Very loose and baggy, a white sash wrapped multiple times across his waist, tight around the ankles. His cloak with a red backing is also very loose and 'spacey'. A white scarf finishes the trademark attire. Overall, very fashionable and would be wonderful for the summer. Maybe, as part Koorime, he doesn't like to be overheated and finds it extremely uncomfortable.  
  
But then again, the animators might've purposely left his outfit this baggy so the rabid Hiei fan girls can use their imagination. Thus succeeding in guaranteed television audience.......  
  
Gosh, I'm giving this too much thought. Oh well, I haven't slept in over 28 hours and am depressingly bored. Now away from my sad-moment-of-the- hour and continue on shall we?  
  
As you can see, Hiei doesn't seem like the type who would wear underwear to begin with. Still, this is because he has spent immense time in the battlefield and is used to this because it compliments his overall personality and provides maximum comfort in mobility. But, on rare occasions, he does wear something outside of this usual attire and, later on in the series, he seems to have settled down a bit from his rough lifestyle. Don't fret, he'll still have that threatening charm. Maybe this will provide him with a different view on undergarments?  
  
B) ~If Hiei wears underwear, what type is it most likely be: boxers or briefs?  
  
For some odd reason, I see him more of a boxers type. This all goes back to the space thing mentioned above. I think him as more of a guy who goes for comfort over fashion even if he has a natural knack for it.  
  
I have to admit, seeing him in a pair of briefs would be interesting....  
  
C) ~If Hiei wears underwear, what color and material would it be?  
  
Hmmmm. This may sound a little obvious but shades of either black or red is expected. However, any dark colors suit is okey-dokey with him. But, and I can't stress this enough, light or 'cheery' colors are definitely on the no list. As far as the material goes, I see him as either a silk or some sort of 'breathable' fabric like cotton. Fabrics, like cotton, allows air to flow so it doesn't feel like some sort of spandex. Silk doesn't cling to your skin and is wrinkle free. It just all goes down to him feeling if he's comfortable or not.  
  
D) ~Would it have any prints on them?  
  
Not likely. A solid color is still fashionable and very trend- setting. I imagine a combination of either black w/ red band or black w/ white band. The main idea is just some sort of dark colors. Maybe he'll have a little signature sewn on the lower cuff saying something like 'Forbidden Child', 'Dare to make my day?', or 'Dragon of Darkness Flame'. Why not go as far as to say a little embroidery of an Asian style dragon, a katana, or a little flame?  
  
Oh, the variety......  
  
E) ~What brand would it be?  
  
Ask a guy. The names that pop into my mind is Fruit Basket, Hanes, and....well that's all I know. Tell them which one they prefer or do a little research of your own and go to your local mall. Truthfully, just pick out the most quality and the stability of it. Keep in mind that he does train and fight a lot. The last thing you'll want is to rip his new underwear during the heat of battle.  
  
^ For once, no sarcastic comment on the above statement.  
  
F) ~What size?  
  
How the hell am I supposed to know? He has a small frame but does move around a lot so pick one that won't slip down during hopping around on tree branches but still be able to allow space around the legs and 'such'. Besides, I'm not that worried on the size issue anyway.  
  
No pun intended.  
  
E) ~ Do you have an example (drawing) of the type of underwear Hiei would chose?  
  
Fortunately, I have drawn a few sketches and am proud of them. They're very detailed with creases and was part of the reason I was prompted to write this along with the e-mail. Unfortunately, I don't have a scanner so I can't show it to you guys and my talent on paint can never compete the same as on paper. There is something called I-M-G-I-N-A-T-I-O-N that works just as well too. Just gather up all the details and just make a mind picture of it.  
  
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Well, that's all the areas I can think of to cover. I hope your curiousity was quenched. Reviews are appreciated and critiscm would be mused over. Flames are great to recieve becaues it gives me a natural hyperness. Any of the ways, I love getting feed back.  
  
P.S. Please refrain from mentioning the imagery that might've popped up while reading this. Umm...at least in full detail. 


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